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You might have read my posts about my experience with the shop that did not install all of my IPD Poly Bushings. They did not install the front control arm bushings and the front trailing arm bushings.
Well today I tackled the job and it took pretty much all day. (Still not quite done)
Scroll down to the end to read a question I have if you don't want read the whole play by play.
The fronts went easy. I have a press and the front control arm bushings came out easy with a big POP. No press needed to install the poly. I am very glad I tackled this job - the shop did not install the curved washer the right way on the rear control arm bushing (cup bushing). This washer comes with the IPD kit for They had beveled side out! I think this would have destroyed the bushing in no time. I gave them the installation instructions, but apparently literacy is not a job requirement there. I got the instructions back with not even a hint of a greasy finger print on them!
The front trailing arm bushings did not go as well. I could not press them out. I don't think the metal pipes I had were lining up right. On the front control arms, the receiving pipe slid over the whole bushing sleeve on the control arm, so there was a little more room to play with. The front trailing arm bushing needed the receiving pipe to be right on top of the trailing arm sleeve. I did have the right sized pipes. The IPD instructions said that 0.60" was needed but it looks more like 0.63" I found a pipe that size at Home Depot, but it crushed under the press. I could have found a 2" ID pipe to fit then entire trailing arm sleeve, but this didn't looks like it would provide good support.
So I resorted to the brute force way. I drilled the bushings. I lit them on fire for a while with a propane torch. I then ripped the center sleeve out and burned away the rest of the rubber. After this I got out a hack saw and sawed through the outer bushing sleeve. Then I pounded and pounded and pounded on it until the sleeve came out. Once again the poly bushing goes in very easy. Thank God for Poly.
Tomorrow I need to reinstall the control arms. I'm totally bushed for today.
One question. When I was cutting the outer bushing sleeves with the hack saw I slightly grazed the sleeve in the trailing arm. I smoothed it out a bit with my dremel, but you can still see a little bit of a crease. Is this a big deal? (I don't think that the poly bushing rotates in the sleeve...the old rubber style certainly does not)
Thanks,
Ted
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